24 April 2003
NEW MEASURES TO PROVIDE CONFIDENCE AND SUPPORT FOR DISADVANTAGED COMMUNITIES
A £7.4m programme of measures to tackle disadvantage in working class communities across Northern Ireland, was announced today by Des Browne MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Northern Ireland.
Targeted at improving health, education, physical and community regeneration, the measures are intended to build trust and confidence in disadvantage communities and tackle poor public services in these areas. The Community Action Group set up by the Minister last November has developed the measures.
Mr Browne said: "A major obstacle to building trust and confidence is the involvement of our young people in street violence. I want to use successful experiences from last year to catch their imagination and interest and provide them with alternatives to street violence. The allocation of an additional £500,000 this year will allow the Education and Library Boards across Northern Ireland to provide, in conjunction with local communities, significantly enhanced youth intervention programmes.
"Local communities must be given the opportunity to develop their local voice and leadership potential. The £3 million Local Community Fund, which will be spent on the ground this year, will have a significant impact in this area. The investment of a further £2.6 million over the next three years through the Department for Social Development’s ongoing Outreach Programme, will allow 14 individual projects across the Province to test new approaches to meeting community need through health, education, community regeneration and the delivery of public services in partnership with local communities.
"Communities need to be stimulated to tackle disadvantage and challenge less effective public services. I am determined to explore new ways to allow communities and their representatives to work more effectively in partnership with government departments and statutory agencies. Local people have the knowledge and potential to build stronger communities. I am committed to providing the support and resources to allow people at a local level to develop the skills and leadership that will make a lasting impact in their communities.
"Local post offices are an essential part of local communities. Potentially up to £750,000 will be needed over the next three years to modernise post offices in urban deprived areas, and to provide additional security measures and improve access for people with disabilities. This will ensure that people in our most disadvantaged urban communities continue to have access to the vital services provided by post offices.
"The poor physical appearance of areas can often have a negative effect on communities. However, we have seen many excellent examples of communities transforming their local environment by working in partnership with statutory and voluntary agencies. I want to empower other communities to do likewise, and I have allocated £350,000 to support the Creating Common Ground Consortium.
"Improving communication between communities is vital to the process of building trust. I have allocated £250,000 for this to underpin the work of organisations such as Mediation Northern Ireland in east Belfast and other community interface areas."
NOTES TO EDITORS:
Local Community Fund
The Secretary of State announced the establishment of this Fund in February 2003. Initially set at £3 million for 2003/04 the Fund is aimed at creating community capacity and leadership in communities feeling left behind and alienated by the progress made elsewhere.
Work is ingoing to identify the particular geographical areas to benefit and indicative amounts to be allocated will be determined in the next few weeks.
Deployment of the Fund will be based on a bottom up approach with local communities determining local priorities for action.
Outreach Programme
The Outreach Programme is a three-year initiative supported by Executive Funds totalling £2.6m.
It aims to assist public sector organisations put the principle of working in partnership with communities into practice by providing financial assistance to innovative, demonstration projects designed to test new approached to meeting need.
A total of 93 applications to the Programme were received, the majority of these came from HSS Trusts, district councils, Education and Library Boards, local Strategy Partnerships and government agencies/departments.
14 applications have been selected for support by the Programme Steering Group and subject to a successful outcome of an economic appraisal it is expected that the first projects will be operational by June 2003.
Youth Intervention
An independent evaluation of last years Belfast Education and Library Board’s youth intervention programmes revealed that the activities provided made a significant difference towards easing conflict and tension within interface areas. It also assisted in reducing "normal" anti- social behaviour.
The Department of Education has identified an additional £130,000 from within its overall Youth Service budget to enable the five Education and Library Boards to provide youth intervention programmes across Northern Ireland this year. The Community Action Group is supplementing this with a further £370,000 to make a total of £0.5 million available.
This will enable the Boards to provide significantly enhanced services to young people right across Northern Ireland not just during the summer but also at other appropriate times throughout the year.
Environmental Improvements
The Creating Common Ground consortium is a unique and strategic partnership of key statutory and voluntary agencies in Northern Ireland, including:
- Northern Ireland Housing Executive;
- Community relations Council;
- Groundwork (NI);
- Northern Ireland Voluntary Trust;
- Northern Ireland Office;
- Department for Social Development (Urban Regeneration Office);
- Department of Agriculture and Rural Development; and
- Business in the Community is the private sector advisory member.
The Consortium is only one of 12 Award Partners with New Opportunities fund throughout the United Kingdom and only one in Northern Ireland, delivering the Green Spaces and Sustainable Communities Programme.
Guidance notes and application forms can be obtained from:
Creating Common Ground,
The Housing Centre,
2 Adelaide Street,
BELFAST
BT2 8PB.
Post Offices in Urban Deprived Areas
In June 2000 the Cabinet Office issued a report recommending a range of measures aimed at modernising the post office network. A number of support packages have been announced recently at national level between Department for Trade and Industry and Post Office Ltd, including payment of compensation to sub-postmasters in urban areas closing their branches and investment in the rural post office network to prevent avoidable closures.
Northern Ireland Post Offices will receive funding from these packages directly through Post Office Ltd.
A Fund for Post Offices in deprived urban areas will be used to reduce the risk of closure of those eligible branches in Northern Ireland not closing as part of the national urban network reinvention programme.
The Department for Social Development is seeking to present a comprehensive approach to urban regeneration across Northern Ireland, focusing on the renewal of neighbourhoods experiencing the most serious social and economic deprivation.
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